Movie Review: Ayushmann, Bhumi sparkle in Shubh Mangal Saavdhan

Mumbai: Love stories in Bollywood have been largely about romantic interludes between 'a boy and girl' which culminate into marriage.Recent years have, however, has seen release of love stories that go beyond just showing the romantic interludes between the couple's, to deal with the real problems confronting an 'in love' couple.

A few years ago 'Shuddh Desi Romance' dealt with the problem of commitment between a boy and girl and how it affects their relationship.This week's release 'Shubh Mangal Saavdhan' goes one step further to take the audience into the sex related problems that put hurdles in the marriage between a couple madly in love.

The story is about a couple who love each other very much but the male protagonist's problem of erectile dysfunction puts hurdles in their marriage.The story of the film revolves around Mudit (Ayushmann Khurana) and Sugandha (Bhumi Pednekar).Mudit is madly in love with Sugandha, but is afraid to say anything to her.Sugandha also notices him and likes him.

However, she is fed up with the everyday hide and seek.One day she calls up Mudit and asks him why he is afraid and does not have courage to talk to her.This breaks the ice between the two of them.Seeing that both of them are in love convinces the families to get them married.The problem arises when the couple try to get intimate before marriage .Both Sugandha and Mudit realise that Mudit has a problem with sex.This creates troubles in their relationship.

Gradually, the girl's family also comes to know about this.The rest of the film is about how Mudit and Sugandha deal with this problem.While there have been films earlier that provided the audience a peep into the private space inhabited by a couple, it is the first time that one comes across a mainstream Hindi film showing a couple discussing thread bare their sexual problems in the confines of their bedroom.However, all this is done in a humorous manner thus ensuring that the film does not come across as vulgar.

Infact, the discussion of the problem between the couple and among family members evokes a laugh in the audience.Infact, the film us sprinkled with humour all through its length.The romance between Mudit and Sugandha comes across as cute and endearing and brings an instant smile on your face.It gives to the credit of the director R S Prasanna, who has gone on record to say that the film is not a sex comedy , that he has managed to ensure that the film does not come across as vulgar.

He has dealt with the sensitive issue of erectile dysfunction in a humorous manner.Infant, humour is one of the highlights of the film.He has also managed to extract brilliant performances from his cast.After impressing with their chemistry in 'Dum Laga Ke Haisha', Ayushmann and Bhumi recreate the same magic with their pairing in 'Shubh Mangal Saavdhan'.Whether in their romantic interludes or in their discussion about the problem, both of them come across as cute and endearing.

After 'Toilet Ek Prem Katha ', Bhumi shows that she is perfect for romantic films dealing with a social problem.She wows the audience with her effortless performance.After his brilliant act in 'Bareilly Ki Barfi ', Ayushmann again impresses as Mudit.He brilliantly portrays Mudit's frustration over his problem.The rest of the cast, including, Brijendra Kala, Shubhankar Tripathi, Anshul Chauhan and Anmol Bajaj also put in an able performance.

The music of the film us a mixed bag with the the song 'Kanha' appealing to the ears.'Shubh Mangal Saavdhan ' is an entertaining romance, that deals with a sensitive issue in a humorous manner and which features sparkling acts by Ayushmann Khurana and Bhumi Pednekar.

Rating : 4/5: one for the innovative subject, one for performances by Ayushmann and Bhumi, one for direction and one for its humour.(UNI)